ALBERTO NEWTON'S RAW TRIP
by Pulp Mag
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What is Raw Trip? Raw Trip is an on-going project that was born in response to the urge we felt to go on a road trip and try to capture simple moments, portraits of unusual characters on the go, and landscapes without a coherent story or aesthetic presentation. From there came the technical experimentation of giving entrance to the human errors that can occur in the processes of developing, scanning and blowing-up. We wanted to take advantage of these “errors” and obtain a final print that mixes digital and analog glitches. We shoot 35mm and 120mm film, then we scan it in low-res, and blow them up in non-professional laboratories. We use C41 machines with no maintenance whatsoever and old chemicals that don’t preserve the quality of the negatives at all. As a result, we get dirty negatives scratched with dust, flares of light, chemical stains, over-exposure, etc. In summary, Raw Trip is born as a rebellion against the obsessive search for the Maximum Quality of Digital Formats like HD or 4K.
Tell us about a Fun road trip experience. Well, I don’t know if it was fun, but it sure was memorable. On my first road trip, from NYC to LA, traveling through the south of the US, the first stop was Northfolk, Virginia, a city heavily hit by the crack epidemic (we didn’t know that at the time). I arrived late at night and the idea of this trips was always to stay in cheap, highway motels. I parked my car in front of the room and. began taking out my gear while a weird looking dude cleaned with a broom outside the motel. II thought he was the concierge, but later that day I found out he was not. I went inside my room to leave my stuff, then I went back outside, and ask the dude if he can find me some weed. This dude told me that he would grant me the favor in exchange for extra cash so he could buy some for himself. Long story short, I bought my weed, and he bought himself $5 of crack. I went back to my room, rolled myself a joint, and went outside to smoke it and found these two soldiers from a local naval base. I shared and few beers with them and we passed the joint. It was getting late so I went back to my room, super stoned by the way, and I heard a knock on the door, it was the weird dude who bought my weed with another friend twice as big as him. They saw me from the window so there was no other option than to open the door. They asked me if they could smoke in my room, I felt a bit intimidated so I said yes. They came inside, sat at a small wooden table, and started talking and smoking their crack pipe. We shared a few laughs, but then things got a bit out of hand when they were so cracked out of their mind that paranoia started hitting them hard. They were so paranoid they even though I was a cop. The bathroom door was open and they thought there was a guy standing inside. Let's remember I was super high for the joint I smoked before. Both dudes started acting so paranoid that I got a little scared and annoyed so I found some courage and I told them to leave since I needed to sleep and it was late. Surprisingly they took it well, walked out and even said “thank you.” Once they left I took the same table and chairs and put it against the door, locking myself in with the lights on. Pretty scary experience. Weed or Booze?
weed all the way!
  What's a perfect Sunday for you? A perfect Sunday for me starts with a ‘Wake and Bake,’ some French Toast with my son, visiting a museum or gallery with him and then probably a nap in the afternoon after a delicious lunch. Maybe some wine with friends and a movie night at home. Nothing too extravagant, just rest and family time.
  What are your influences?
When you need a boost, what are some movies that get you motivated?
Ooh! This one is as hard as the previous one. I love the early Tarantino Films, Inherent Vice by Paul Thomas Anderson, IInception or the Batman Trilogy by Christopher Nolan, Paris Texas from Win Wenders, Lars Von Trier’s Melancholia. It also depends on my current mood, like movies from Tony and Ridley Scott, they can be very inspiring. Also, action movies, like Heat from Michael Mann. There are so many that it's almost impossible to make a list. If I want to watch classic films I like the French New Wave a lot, Godard, Tuffaut, Clouzot. It really depends on what mood I’m in.
  What do you think people will be wearing in 50 years? Okay, so being a bit of a fatalist, in 50 years we will be facing an age in humanity where we’ll all be on survival mode. I don’t think the fashion industry will be as relevant as it is today. Will be wearing utility clothes for the lifestyle that we will have at that moment. Denim, cotton, and natural/recycled fabrics, or whatever we come up with to protect ourselves from the extreme climate.  Film or Digital? Film all the way, or old digital formats. I am a sucker for film. I love every variation that can happen in the process of film. The “not knowing what to expect,” the space for surprise and the “lucky mistakes.” With a lot of experience, however, you might be able to have a bit of control over those mistakes. Regarding digital format, (not that I have something against it), sometimes I use it depending on the project, but I always get a little uncomfortable with absolute perfection. For me, extreme quality tends to be boring.
  For you, what is the essence of photography? Wow this is a hard one. It depends on every artist's relationship with their camera. To me, photography is a tool that allows me to capture things that I want to keep, some of them are things I see on the streets or projects I do besides fashion. The essence is, for instance, what each of us can see in those photos. I think the essence of photography comes from the audience rather than the creator. Out of all 7 billion people in this world, who's your favorite?
My Son.
Any advice on which road to take?
always the road less travelled.
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